The First of Many Days at Clifton – Jess Chalmers

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There are not many specific childhood days you are able to recall as a young adult, and yet one of my more vivid memories is the day I first met Ryan. One spring day in May 2000, the class of 1G was told a new boy was coming to visit and he would be joining our school soon: a boy named Ryan. When he arrived on his first day of Clifton, I was the one child lucky enough to not have to write about my pets, but instead I was allowed to play with him on the Gizmo’s for a while and, after being struck by how nice he seemed, we quickly became friends. Little did I know, this was the start of an incredible ten years of school for a very special boy.

Throughout the next five years of Primary school, we shared many memories such as having ‘midnight’ feasts with Shimmy at 9.30pm, playing in his Garden and, of course, lots of school trips sat at the back of the bus passing notes between our peers thinking we were the buisness. I remember forcing him (along with others) into his first kiss with Phil by Taits, enduring countless rehearsels for the Y5 Play – The 7 Sided Dice – in which his cheeky grin effortlessly personified his character Marney, and even visiting a beach in Wales where, after loosing my watch, Ryan helped me look for it with out being asked because that’s the sort of person he was: loyal and selfless.

He was a part of many of my most happy memories from those years, as one of my best friends, and I cannot imagine how his closest friends who knew him nowadays must feel. What happened was a tragedy, yet the incredible way in which the Bresnahan family and Clifton have dealt with everything is truely a testiment to Ryan and how incredible he was.